There is a seemingly endless list of activities performed at home, work, and countless other settings that require the use of an extension ladder in order to allow its user to gain access to areas that otherwise would be inaccessible. As ladder use is oftentimes a year-round necessity, many times such ladders are used in hazardous wintertime conditions where snow, ice, and otherwise slippery and unstable ground conditions exist.
In fact, such hazardous ladder use is frequently necessitated in winter climates when a user is putting up and taking down outdoor decorations, clearing ice dams from gutters and in some areas of the world, removing dangerously heavy snow accumulations from a rooftop. Should the base of the ladder slip on icy ground or unsure ground when the ladder is in use, serious injury or even death may result.
Many extension ladders are often provided with pivotally-attached shoes with rubber feet to increase traction. However, these rubberized feet may become brittle in frigid environments thereby having the negative effect of decreasing surface friction when most needed. Accordingly, there is a need for a means by which the use of extension ladders can be made safer in any environmental condition but especially so in hazardous winter conditions. The development of the present invention fulfills this need.